Jarrid Wilson, pastor and advocate for mental health, kills himself

An American pastor known for his mental health care has killed himself, church officials say.

Jarrid Wilson, 30, worked at the 1

5,000 member Harvest Christian Fellowship Church for 18 months before his death.

Mr. Wilson and his wife founded the Anthem of Hope, a program created to help people cope with depression.

He is survived by his two sons and wife July, who wrote that the death had "completely ripped my heart out of my chest".

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My loving, giving, kind-hearted, encouraging, handsome, funny, giving the shirt to his back husband went with Jesus late last night. No more pain, my jerry, no more struggle. You are complete and you are finally free. Suicide and depression fed the worst lies, but you knew the truth about Jesus and I know you are by His side right now. I love you forever, Thomas jarrid Wilson, but I must say that you were gone has completely ripped my heart out of my chest. You loved me and our boys relentlessly and I am eternally grateful that I had YOU as husband and father of our boys. You are mine forever and I will continue to let others know about the hope in Jesus you found and spoke so boldly about. Suicide does not get the last word. I will not let it. You always said “Hope gets the last word. Jesus gets the last word ”. The work of your life has led thousands to Jesus' feet and your boldness to tell you about your struggle with anxiety and depression has helped so many other people feel that they were not alone. You were a hope for everyone, baby, and I'll do my best to continue your legacy of love for my last breath. I need you, year, but you needed Jesus to keep you and I must be okay with that. You are everything to me. Since the day we met. J & J. Love you more. These are photos of him at his happy place – fishing the day away. I'll teach our boys all your tricks, sake. Promise. You are my #anthemofhope

A post shared by Julianne Wilson 🌿 (@itsjuliwilson) on September 10, 2019 at 2:02 PM PDT

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His death confirmed by Senior Pastor Greg Laurie, who leads the church in Southern California.

"Jarrid loved the Lord and had a servant's heart. He was lively, positive, and always served and helped others," he wrote on the church's website.

"Jarrid also repeatedly coped with depression and was very open about his ongoing struggles," Laurie adds. "He particularly wanted to help those who were dealing with suicidal thoughts."

Another pastor at the church, Jason Powell, also paid tribute.

Shortly before his death, Wilson tweeted that he had requested the burial of a "Jesus-loving woman who took her own life."